#siren tim drake

[brekitten]

Siren Hunters

For @meowmeowmeowmeow4x

Siren hunting is not a profession befitting of someone of Jack and Janet Drake's elite status. Those who have publicly expressed their desire to hunt creatures found only in fairytales have been ridiculed and belittled, mocked for their foolish passions and desires. And yet.

Jack and Janet have always been fascinated by those tales of sirens, and sailors being lured to their deaths by the song of a monstrous creature that disguised itself as a beautiful woman. But they could never pursue these interests for fear of being disgraced by their peers and family. That was, until they met Jack Fenton and Maddie Walker in college.

They became fast friends, with their shared interest in sirens and passion for uncovering the truth. After college, they went on numerous hunts (and as far as Gotham's citizens knew, they were going to archeological sites), and though not every hunt was successful, many were, and that only made them more determined.

All of this, however, only left poor Tim Drake home alone for months on end, with no clue as to what his parents were really doing on their "archeological digs" - because he was just as clueless as the rest of Gotham City. (The Drakes didn't want little Timmy to ruin their reputation by blabbing about how they hunted sirens, now did they?)

The only bright side to Tim's otherwise crappy and lonely life was Danny.

Danny was the Fenton's son, and he would babysit Tim whenever his parents went with Tim's on their hunts. He was six years older than Tim, and his self-proclaimed cousin - though Tim couldn't help but feel like Danny was more of a brother to him. Danny certainly cared more about him than his own parents did, never once denying him the love and affection he craved. Tim had a feeling that it was because Danny understood what it was like to have parents that completely forgot about your existence in favor of their jobs. But he never asked.

Danny wasn't there when it happened. Danny wasn't there when Tim drowned in Gotham Harbor, having slipped and fallen into the water while trying to photograph the Bats' fight on the docks.

Danny wasn't there when the Bats turned him to save his life.

Tim couldn't bring himself to be upset that he was a siren now. His new family was amazing, and gave him all of the love and attention he could ever want. For the first time in a long time, he was happy. Tim couldn't help but think that Danny would like to live with the Bats and get a nice family, too.

Then his parents - plus the Fentons and Danny, surprisingly, though Tim certainly wasn't complaining - came home for the summer.

[crow-aeris]

Fuck it, imma post the last chapter early

Chapter 8: Golden Sunlight

its the last chapter for mermay :3 i hope yall enjoyed! i had a lot of fun posting so

[deadsetobsessions]

Sea Cryptic! Danny AU- Pt.4

[Pt.1] [Pt.2] [Pt.3] [Pt.5] [Pt.6] [Pt.7] [Pt.8] [Pt.9] [Pt.10]

Danny was sitting in the back, his backpack obnoxiously taking up the seat next to him, when the door to the lecture hall creaked open near silently.

“What are you in here for?” Danny asked the guy who crept into class. He sympathetically took his backpack off the Seat of Shame and allowed the guy to sit down. Funnily enough, they had the same hair and eye color.

“Gen Ed. Undecided. You?” The guy grunted quietly back.

“Environmental studies. I’m Danny.”

“Tim.”

With the implicit understanding of two people in a required class they could not give less than two fucks about, Tim and Danny tuned back into the lecture. When the class was assigned group work, Danny looked over to see Tim softly snoring, head slammed down on the table.

“Tim. Wake up, dude.” Danny poked his shoulder.

“Huh? Class over?”

“Nah, we got group work. Discussion board.”

“Oh shit, thanks for waking me up. Wanna team up?”

Danny shrugged. “Sure. We should aim to post it in the middle so the professor doesn’t read our answers to the class.”

“Yeah, sounds like a good idea. Any idea what we’re talking about?”

“Kind of?”

“Good enough for me.”

——

Tim Drake kept seeing Danny Fenton around on campus.

“Danny! Dude, what are you doing?”

Danny turned, gloved hands full of crumpled trash. “Picking up after the student population, apparently.”

“Didn’t think environmental studies was that serious.”

“Global warming is very serious, you jerk,” Danny smirked at him, crossing the grass to put the trash into the trash can. “Reduce, reuse, oil shouldn’t be spilled in water and all that.”

“Basic stuff,” Tim grinned. Nice, he basically had a friend past Bernard now!

They were friends, right?

“And yet humanity fails to comprehend it. Incredible. Incredibly stupid that is.”

“They get it. Major corporations just don’t care.”

Danny sighed. “True that. You on your way to your next class?” He took off his biodegradable gloves off (nitrile and nylon, baby!) and chucked them into the trash.

“I’ve got free time, actually. Prof cancelled for his daughter’s surgery.”

“Oh, shit, that’s rough! You wanna go downtown and join the strike?”

“A strike? What for?” Even as he asked, Tim hiked his bag higher onto his shoulder, ready to go. They fell into step as the two left campus.

“Apparently, Quillan Pharma was doing some shady shit at their manufacturing plants. I think it’s like killing kids, and pouring toxins into the ground.”

“Oh, shit.”

“Yeah. Oh! Poison Ivy’s gonna be there!”

Tim blinked. He casted a sideways look at Danny. Sure he’s been here long enough to know… but it couldn’t hurt to check. “You know she’s an eco-terrorist, right?”

“Okay, but like… people suck sometimes. And all she’s asking for is like don’t kill the planet. And she doesn’t do that whole mind control thing too much anymore! The Sirens are so cool. Plus, one of my best friends at home might actually kill me if I don’t try to get her autograph. Poison Ivy is like, Sam’s personal hero.”

Tim snickered. “Yeah, okay. Mind if one of my friends join? His name’s Bernard.”

“The more the merrier,” Danny nodded. “Ooo! Hot chocolate. Want some?”

Danny bought three drinks as Tim trailed behind, texting Bernard.

“He said yes.”

“Cool! We should meet up somewhere before the drinks get cold.”

Well, Danny got the autograph. Tim got a new friend, and Bernard got a drink from his crush.

——

“Oh, you’re the glowing dude that Batman always talks about!”

Danny blinked, eyes scanning the wing-like cape and the yellow emblem on the hero’s suit. Danny was indeed glowing, stars and nebulas freckling across neon green skin, and glowing hair the color of a white dwarf star, tinged with the blue from his ice core.

“I… have absolutely no idea who you are,” Danny lied, like a liar. He’s found a surprising niche of entertainment in messing with the local vigilantes and he’ll be damned if he missed this opportunity.

He heard a snicker from the comm lines as Red Robin visibly brushes it off.

“I’m Red Robin. Why are you picking up trash?”

“Picking up after you humans, apparently.”

The both of them blink, feeling a weird sense of déjà vu. A moment of awkward silence passed before they both shook it off.

“Are you here to help? No offense, but the track record for you people is terrible.” Danny strode over and grabbed a bag. He opened it, and shook it at Red Robin’s face. “See? Batarangs, these odd bird looking ones, the R’s. Seriously, pick up after yourselves!”

“Oh, woah, can we have these back?”

Danny yanked the bag back before Red Robin could get close. “Pay me. These were incredibly tedious to pick up. Especially the batarangs. I mean, I even found a whole bunch of old rusted ones in the middle of the bay. What did you do, dump an entire bag in there from the air?”

Red Robin sighed and took out a wad of cash, with tracking fluid all over it. Danny grimaced, smelling the odd scent on the money. “That’s not real cash. It smells off. Are you trying to give me counterfeits because you’re broke?”

Red Robin gaped, oddly offended. “No! They’re real!”

“Doesn’t smell like it. It’s stinkier than the trash. Go get the one with the money, the litterer. Tell him I’ll be back the next full moon. I don’t want to talk to you anymore.” Danny grumbled, disappearing on the spot to watch Red Robin flounder with the stack of cash and the piles of dead bodies on the shore.

“What the fuck even is my life these days?” Red Robin wondered out loud, stuffing the cash back into his pocket. He looked over the plastic wrapped bodies and slumped, sighing.

Oddly enough, Danny felt a sense of sympathy. Well, he’s not getting paid for sympathy. He’s not getting paid at all tonight, actually. Danny flew off, plunging once more into the depths of the significantly cleaner waters, and used his ice to scoop out oil stains.

Danny glanced around and sighed. He had a lot of work to do.

——

“So you’re saying he’s like a werewolf mermaid fae child immortal god thing, right?”

Bruce grunted.

“B, what the hell are you smoking these days? You know drugs are bad, right? Do we need Superman to give you that PSA?” Jason snickered.

Tim, massaging his arms from having to haul an ungodly amount of dead bodies, grunted. He’s so similar to Bruce that it gave the people currently in the cave hives.

“He said full moon. I don’t think we can track him with regular stuff. The bugs kept shorting out.”

“Oh boy,” Dick sighed. “Don’t fall off the spiral cliff, Tim. You’ve got midterms to think about so no stalking the guy.”

“Yet,” Tim shot back, changing out of his suit.

Bruce grunted, setting aside a huge stack of cash.

[incorrectbatfam]

Your pfp turned evil and now you have to fight it. How screwed are you?

[vodrae]

Selina Kyle's shelf

Character design from WFA

[shyjusticewarrior]

Jason and Harley: *interacting*

Tim: *gasp* Oh, that's why I find her so annoying! She reminds me of my brother!

Selina: You're just now realizing the resemblance? It's half of why I like Jason.

[human-space-heater]

Batfam Incorrect Quotes (Part 2 feat: Gotham Sirens)

Jason: Please say words of encouragement to me so I don’t murder someone right now. Cass:  There are no books in prison. Jason: *sighs* Thank you. 

Tim: Anybody got any crayons so I can color in my Ph. D.?

 *Jason is comforting Dick* Jason: Stop crying because it’s over. Start smiling because Damien is someone else’s problem now.

Damien: Tim gave me a get better soon card. Dick: That's sweet! Damien: I wasn't sick, they just think I can do better.

Damien: WHY DID YOU KILL HIM?! HE COULD HAVE HAD HOPES AND DREAMS, HE COULD HAVE HAD A FAMILY!!! Duke: Damien- Duke: It- it was just an ant-

Cass: Sometimes, I don’t realize an event was traumatic until I tell it as a funny story and notice everyone is staring at me weird.

Harley I got us matching friendship bracelets, and you say I don't care about our relationship. Ivy: These are handcuffs. Harley: Yeah, 'cause we're partners in crime!

Ivy: Here’s the cold medicine you asked for. Ivy: *dumps 3 shopping bags of wine on the table* Selina: ...Thanks.

[dcsnextgaycharacter]

[ghost-bxrd]

Conclusion pertaining previous research topic:

Motor boats not viable for mer infested waters.

Eight out of ten incidents occurring within parameters of high noise and water pollution. Casualties resulting from ensuing shipwrecks unsustainable over prolonged period of time. The last two years have recorded a total of sixteen researchers either missing or confirmed dead.

Sailboats may traverse mer territory unaccosted nine out of ten times. Percentage of casualties resulting from ensuing shipwreck equal to that of the previous category. The last two years have recorded a total of five researchers either missing or confirmed dead.

Amount of casualties within the local populace remains unconfirmed.

Further research required on electric motor boats, current data implies promising results.

Recommendation:

Cessation of motor boat usage for expedition purposes. Gradual conversion to electric motors if hypothesis and data results prove true.

Researcher: [REDACTED]

ID: 20X1215XX

Department: [REDACTED], mer related incidents

Clearance level: 4

File Notes:

Research result on the topic of mer related incidents during expeditions. Research papers missing, presumably destroyed during the sinking of the [REDACTED] Research Facility. Research hypothesis proved to be correct, resulting in a reduction of at least sixty percent of the casualties per year. Researcher status: deceased.

[blughxreader]

Baby Stalker!Tim AU where he stalks the Gotham Sirens instead of Batman and Robin.

Maybe its the Siren’s protective found-family dynamic or the simple fact that they’re super cool, but something about them draws Tim in.

Ivy, Harley, and Selina finally notice their little stalker when they break into the Drake’s house to steal some unprotected valuables.

Cue the hilarity of them being unable to shake the little bastard off until they begrudgingly agree to feed him dinner.

Also… chaotic neutral vigilante Tim Drake with a checkered leather plant-themed costume.

[metalotaku-da]

I am so proud of this line I had to share.

[greentearex-withhoney]

POV: You Live in Gotham City and You’re Just Trying to Get Home from Work

It’s an awful city, but it’s home so you love it

(And will fight any Metropolitan who has shit to say about it)

[jadedwolf18-blog]

Mini Phantom Invasion.

Hi, I plan for this to be a series of inter connected one shots based on some of my favorite prompts. I’m a huge Tim Drake/Red Robin x Danny phantom shipper, so for now most of my fics will feature them. Once I’ve end this series, I’ll try branching out to other relationships Danny could have with the bats.

I can’t remember where I got all of them but I’ll try to tag as I find them. If anyone notices a prompt or plot they’ve seen please let me know or tag the person it came from. I’m knew to posting on Tumblr so I’m still getting used to how to tag and insert links. Thank you.

🤍🖤💚💙💚🖤🤍

Chapter 1

Danny was not having a good day. He’d had a fight with his parents about ghost hunting, stating clearly that he had no interest in their bias views on an entire species based on one encounter when they were young. It had escalated to the point where they blamed his lack of interest on the fact that he was spending to much time with his sister and his female friends. 

He’d had enough! He left mid argument and was contemplating just packing up and moving into the Ghost Zone permanently. As he’d slammed the door he could hear his parents shouts for him to come back and once again blaming his behaviour on a ghost.

What did his sexuality have to do with ghost hunting? And what was wrong with wanting to be more feminine sometimes? He honestly didn’t understand why they found it so weird or wrong for him to swap between genders and pronouns? Jazz, Sam and Tucker accepted him as he was, they didn’t but an eye when he would randomly say ‘she’, ‘they’ or ‘him’, they just continued the conversation with the new pronoun and that was that. They understood and accepted that sometime he felt male or female or neither. He was lucky to have them. 

The day just seemed to continue down hill from there. It was summer vacation so Sam was forced to spend time with her parents at some rich holiday resort, Tucker had won a spot in some sort of tech camp and Jazz was still at College working on a finals thesis and was unable to come back for the summer. He was essentially alone for the summer. He could hang out with Val but she was working a lot and he didn’t want to bother her. He still felt guilty about her dad losing his job, even if it wasn’t entirely his fault.

*****

After leaving the house he’d found a place to transform and let the cool rings of light soothe him and took off into the sky. After finding out they could survive in space it became their favourite way to relax, they’d spend ours exploring space, even hang out on the moon. Thank you high speed and portal powers. Their Phantom form had changed in the last two years. People could no longer tell if they were male or female and he looked less human now. Thankfully, they looked nothing like their alternate future self. When their legs melded together their ghostly tail looked more eel like and their ears were longer and thiner, resembling delicate fins. Jazz and their friends had joked about how the acted like cat ears. Lastly their face was now a pale mint color, almost white and translucent, his eyes were still the same luminous ecto-green with deep blue pupils. The only similarity to Dan, that they could see, were the fangs and longer hair both of which were also present in their human form.

*****

They had been flying around Amity, a somewhat lazy patrol of his claimed haunt, it was a calm night. Ever since they had defeated Pariah Dark the other ghost had calmed down and came to Amity less frequently. A few still came to bug them, namely Skulker, Ember, Johny and Kitty. Young Blood and Boxy more frequently than the others and of course Cujo came by often. Their visits were more to do with fulfilling their obsessions than anything else. Danny’s obsession was Space but so was Protection. They needed to fulfil both to some extent or suffer from a form of ghost hunger. It was a win win situation even if they did go back… home? Was it really still a home? 

Before they could go down that dark spiral again their instincts took over and they narrowly dodged a bright green shot that had been aimed at their head. Whirling around and flying higher out of range they looked at their attacker and just stared.

“of course it’s them.” They muttered. Before repeating it with more venom than they thought they were capable of. Which was shocking because not even Vlad had receive as much hatred in the entirety of the time they’ve known him than in that split second they felt it towards their own parents. “Of fucking course it’s them!”

They blink away the shock of such an intense emotion and huffed. Not even bothering to acknowledge them they turned around to leave. That had been a mistake. They’d barely made it a few paces before pain bloomed across their back as an Eco-blast shredded the fins on their lower back and bit deep into their flesh. They bit back a cry of shock as they felt themselves plummet from the sky. It took a moment but they gathered enough concentration to open a portal. He didn’t care where they ended up as their only thought was ‘Somewhere safe.’

They fell through and just before they lost consciousness, they heard their parents yell after him.

“Get back here you ghost scum, so we can rip you apart molecule by molecule!”

“We won’t forgive you for corrupting our Danny!”

‘Of course… It’s always Phantoms fault…’ Danny’s world turned black as he continued to fall. Maybe when they opened their eyes again all of it would have been a dream.

*****

Somewhere in the infinite green a Grandfather clock chimed. A screen flickered. Time flowed on.

“All is as it should be.”

Chapter 2

(I'm Not A Cynic Song by Alec Benjamin)

Danny pulled their little floating ducks out of their personal pocket dimension and set them to gently drift in the hot spring. They had found it while wandering the forest. Their lower back still ached and they were a little worried about how it hadn’t healed completely yet.

*****

They didn’t know where they were or how long they had been in this dimension but they were safe and alone for the time being. When they’d woken up, the first thing they did was try to figure out where they were. thankfully no-one had discovered them, tucked away in the underbrush of the forest they had landed in. They’d let invisibility wash over them and flew high enough to get a view of the land. They recognised asian architecture and flew in the direction they had spotted a small farming village. With a closer look they determined they had landed in some version of Japan. Instinctually they knew they were not in their home dimension. Everything, even the air and feel of the atmosphere felt slightly shifted to the left. It was like that feeling of entering a hotel room, they were all essentially the same but there were the little details that told you it was a different hotel. 

*****

Brushing the thought, and everything associated with the reason they were injured and alone in a foreign dimension, aside. They coiled their tail in the centre of the spring and sank down until their lower back was submerged in the healing warmth of the spring. Closing their eyes in content they began to hum. Their eyes shot open when they felt a gentle nudge against his arm but smiled gently at the little wisp as it bobbed and drifted in the breeze. They continued to hum and watched in amusement as more joined the first. The little orbs of light ranged in color from soft pale blues to vibrant greens and warm reds, oranges and yellows.

They lost themselves in their song as they twirled in and played with the water, creating little floating ice crystals that caused mist to form around them as hot and cold air danced around each other. Humming soon gave way to words as they swayed to the rhythm only they could hear. 

“I'm just bein' realistic, bein' honest with myself

I've tried bein' optimistic but it doesn't seem to help

So I'll just have to admit this is the hand that I've been dealt

I'm not bein' pessimistic, just bein' honest with myself”

They were thankful to Pandora, who had taught them to sing in an effort to train his ghostly wail, for realising he was taking on the form and habits of a triton. 

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They poured all the hurt, betrayal, anger and loneliness into their voice, allowing them to release it all in a more melodic call than his previous wail. That, as pandora explained, had been an unhealthy burst of emotion and they were lucky they hadn’t blown out their vocal cords the last few times they used it. 

“I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it”

Through their practice they found they could influence emotions but not out right control them. They were glad, influencing them was bad enough, he didn’t want to manipulate anyone. They didn’t want to spend their life wondering if the people around them truly cared or if they had somehow manipulated them into caring. They may me a budding empath but they still struggled to tell the difference between a sincere emotion and a projected emotion.

“You only get that which you're given, it's not always up to you

Not every Sunday is a picnic 'cause the sky ain't always blue

You can't just change the weather by changing your point of view

Some days you have to wait until the storm just passes through”

Danny’s voice grew louder as their emotions poured out into the lyrics. They knew they still had their friend, their sister, Elle and everyone in the Infinite Realm. They were also the Half Ghost son of ghost hunters and scientist with a heavy bias against Ecto-entities. They will be the rulers of an entire realm in only a few short years.

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They gave a bitter sweet smile as they watched the wisps duck and weave between the ice crystals. They looked around for their ducks and their smile turned a little more sad as they waved their hand and the little ducks joined the dancing lights and crystals. Each one was modelled after his favourite comic book vigilante. They’d had to save them from the dump truck once, they’d been looking for them when he’d asked his parents, their father had made an off hand comment about how he should throw out old toys and they’d panicked. They’d manage to find and save them all just before the truck arrived.

“So like a boat on the ocean, I'll rock with the waves

God, I'm so sick of this notion that I have to fake

Fake my emotions and pretend I'm okay

So like a boat on the ocean, I'll just rock with the waves”

Jazz had bought them for them, after they had told her about being gender fluid and pan, they were probably one of their most treasured possessions. Jazz had gone on a whole spiel about how it’s important that she show support and provide a safe and understanding environment. They hadn’t been listening, they’d been crying. To caught up in their overflowing emotions and happiness. It lasted a day, their parents had been less than understanding, with their passive-aggressive comments and actions. 

“I'm not a cynic, oh, today's just not my day

I've tried to spin it 'bout a thousand different ways

But from every angle, oh, the outlook is the same

I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

Their frown returned. They had shot them, that in itself wasn’t unusual, as Phantom. Isn’t that a sad thought. What was was that there had been no prior warning. It was a sniper shot, from their mother. Only their heightened hearing and instinct had saved them from ending up dead dead instead of a Halfa. That bothered him

“I swear that I'm not a cynic, my glass just has no water in it today”

They returned to humming the last notes of their song as the dunked under the water to rinse off. They popped back up and gathered their ducks, floated up out of the spring and laughed as the wisps twirled around him. They landed on the ground, allowing their legs to form and walked off into the forest, dancing lights trailing after them. Completely unaware of their watchers.

*****

The shadows slunk away to report their findings. While two birds hesitantly returned to their temporary nest, One worried and wanting to help the being that reminded him so much of his younger siblings. The other having felt a connection to a being that had shared similar experiences, someone they wanted to help and if they wanted to end the beings loneliness… that was no one’s business but their own. Both slept little that night, both determined to find the being again and offer what they could to help.

*****

@im-totally-not-an-alien-2

@alinmenttreasure

@blackroserelina

@blacksea21090

@seraphinedemort

[suppose-i-was-worm]

Rules of Engagement

**The last aside I currently have for the arctic siren AU! This is ALLL fluff**

Dick was confused. Jason, his precious little brother, had been acting strange for a few days- searching things on his phone during patrols, checking his personal bank account on the Batcomputer, and generally being shifty.

Now, Dick Grayson knew when to ignore things. He might be a bat, but he’d spent enough time with Young Justice to be emotionally competent like that. Whatever was going on with Jason? Probably shouldn’t just be ignored. He didn’t want another duffel bag incident.

Not that he expected that to happen- it had been almost a year since Jason’s last pit-fueled outburst, and he still hadn’t explained what happened to make them go away. Dick wouldn’t pry- his little wing was happier than he’d ever been, with a steady boyfriend and a fast hold on the crime in Crime Alley.

“What do you want, Dick?”

“Hey Jay! Want to hang out with me today?”

“I… had plans already.”

“Oh. Well, maybe we can hang out tomorrow? Get some bonding time in?”

There was a long pause, and Dick let it happen so that Jason could think about what he wanted to say.

“You could come with me. On my errand.”

Feeling a thrill of triumph, Dick nodded furiously, before remembering he was on the phone.

“Sure! What errand are we running?”

“A shopping trip. Dress nice.”

~~

Dick waited impatiently for Jason to ride up the long drive, motorcycle helmet in hand. He was almost shaking with excitement to hang out with his brother.

Much to his surprise, instead of stalling and waiting for Dick to get on, Jason pulled to the side and parked his motorcycle.

“Hey, little wing! Need something in the manor?”

“In the garage.” Jason wasn’t meeting Dick’s eyes. “We’re taking the BMW.”

Dick followed bemusedly, and they passed and equally bemused Tim on the way. Jason glanced at Tim, then at Dick, and then scowled.

“You can come, Drake, but I’m not taking the Demon Brat.”

“Hey! I had to dress nice, but Tim gets to come in jeans and a t-shirt?”

Jason grinned back at Dick.

“I like him better right now.”

Dick faked a swoon as they walked.

After a short squabble for shotgun- Dick won- the three of them headed out. Dick asked a few questions on the way, but Jason got quieter and quieter the longer they drove. Once he stopped answering, Tim leaned forward.

“Are we going to the Diamond District?”

Dick looked to Jason, who jerked a nod.

“Shopping.”

“For what?”

Jason flushed red as a tomato.

“Engagement ring.”

Tim slapped a hand over Dick’s mouth before he could let out an excited squeal.

~~~

Jason led them to the first jewelry store on the strip, hands in his pockets and looking as nonchalant as he could, still a little heat in his cheeks from his confession in the car.

The chipper store clerk greeted them without batting an eye at Tim’s attire.

“How can I help you today?”

With a smile that he didn’t feel, Jason answered.

“Yes- I’m looking for engagement rings. Do you have anything with blue or green stones?”

The clerk ducked her head in a nod.

“Of course, sir. What size were you needing? We might have the right size in stock for take-home today, or we can resize and you can pick your choice up later!”

Jason knew this next part would be awkward, but with Dick and Tim hovering behind him, he had the courage to pull out the small box in his pocket, and then open it to reveal an onion ring crisp.

“About this size.”

He watched as the clerk visibly struggled to keep from laughing as she took the box from him.

“Let me- ahem. Let me measure that for you, then.”

“Do that.”

Without turning, Jason elbowed Dick, who was snickering quietly behind him. Tim had the grace to at least turn away.

“Shut up. It was the only way I could figure it out without him being suspicious.”

“I didn’t say anything, Jaybird!”

“You thought it real hard.”

~~~

This was surreal. Tim wasn’t sure exactly what was going on, but by the third high-end jewelry store they went to (and no robberies yet!), he figured this was a prank of some kind. Surely Jason didn’t have to pull out the onion loop at every store?

By the glint in Jason’s eye leaving the first store, yes. He did. For fun.

Tim needed more coffee.

Finally, after six stores (how were there so many jewelry stores in Gotham?) and three hours (how were none of the stores robbed in a three hour span?), they found a ring that Jason approved of.

Tim had liked most of the rings they saw, but apparently this one was the one. It was a beautiful ring- a coffin cut blue sandstone framed tastefully by diamonds on a twisting silver band.

It was also prohibitively expensive for anyone who wasn’t filthy rich.

He didn’t know why Jason had snickered when the clerk had described the gem as ‘coffin cut’, but then again, he was tired and wanted to go home.

Don’t get him wrong, Tim was overjoyed that Jason had deemed him worthy of joining in on this trip- it’s just… An excited, emotional Dick is an exhausting Dick.

Their big brother was practically bouncing out of his skin when they left the store, perfectly sized ring in hand.

“Can we go get lunch? Have you planned your proposal? Have you two talked about marriage yet? How do you think he’ll react?”

Jason shrugged, biting down on the onion loop with a satisfying crunch.

“No. Nein. Non. Positively, I hope.”

Dick pouted, and Tim steeled himself to resist the oncoming puppy-dog-eyes. Dick was unfairly good at them.

“C’mon, Jaybird, give us something?”

Jason scowled.

“I let you come get the ring with me. We’re going back to the manor to show Alfred.”

Tim couldn’t help but cut in.

“Not Bruce?”

After a short pause, Jason sighed.

“Maybe Bruce, if Dick stops annoying me.”

Dick mimed zipping his lips shut and then eating the key, which Tim thought was counterintuitive.

~~~

Bruce watched as his second son showed Cass and Duke the ring he’d purchased for Danny. He’d been shown, thankfully, and approved- of both the ring and the intended. Even if he didn’t he would still be happy for Jason.

Danny Nightingale would be a wonderful addition to the family, not just because of his physical resemblance to the rest of his adoptees. He was smart, quick-witted, and willing to stand up for both himself and the people he cared about.

Now, Bruce was a little wary that this was going so fast- the two had only been dating for a little over ten months, but if it made Jaylad happy, then so be it.

He would, however, insist on being the one to give his son away. Maybe he could convince Diana to officiate? Jason would like that. He had always idolized her, even when he was running around in the Robin suit.

Was Bruce jealous? No.

A little.

Jason had pulled out his phone to make a call.

“Hi Aunt Diana! I’m going to ask my boyfriend to marry me!”

Fine, yes. Bruce was wildly jealous. But he got it. Wonder Woman is cooler than Batman.

[incorrectbatfam]

What are Christmas carols in Gotham like?

Now presenting the latest holiday album craze: A Merry Gotham Christmas, including your favorite tracks such as...

Jingle Bells (Batman Smells)

Santa Croc Is Coming To Town

Twelve Days of Batmas

Do You Fear What I Fear

Carol of the Birds

Siren Night

All I Want For Christmas Is Some Peace and Quiet

Jingle Bell Rogue

Freezie the Iceman

I Saw Batman Kissing Santa Claus

Deck the Goons

Let It Explode

Batman Baby

Joker the Red-Nosed Villain

Feliz Navidead

...and many more! Available now on iTunes for $9.99 or at your favorite retailer.

[vodrae]

Wayne's gala for Gotham's charity, 3 AM:

Steph, Cass, every Amazonians in the room, Kate Kane, Renée Montoya, Maggie Sawyer, Alysia Yeoh, Cheetah, Selina Kyle, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, Eiko Hasigawa : GIMME GIMME GIMME A MAN AFTER MIDNIGHT ! WON'T SOMEBODY HELP ME CHASE THE SHADOWS AWAY !

Bernard : Are they not all...?

Tim : Oh yes !